Mods, feel free to sticky and move this to either the RP or Gen OOC forums. Whichever is a better fit.

This is a guide on how to properly fill out the information we require when you upload an image to the Wiki. This is not a suggestion; this is a requirement. If you do not properly cite your image, your image may be deleted. It's only by the good graces (and, honestly, apathy) of the Wiki team that your images are not deleted. But, all it takes is for someone (me?) to tag your image with {{delete}} and it'll be gone.

If you don't know how to fill that out, here's a guide. Or, you know, you can examine someone else's (properly) cited image, and use that as a guide.

|attention= Any relevant attention that needs to be made.|description= A description of the image. So if you have Random Stormtrooper 3 representing Bob the SWE Stormy, you would say "Bob the SWE Stormy". Providing links to the article(s) is also helpful.|source= The exact source where you found the image. Did you find it on Google Images? If so, provide the link to the actual image, not the link from Google Images.|author= The artist of the image. Unknown is not acceptable. With a little bit of effort and digging, you CAN find the original artist and/or organization that commissioned the piece of art. Not giving proper credit is the same thing as stealing. |uploader= Who uploaded the image? (That's you.)|filespecs= I don't know, ignore.|licensing= The licensing under which you're using the image. PROTIP: Most uses of images does NOT constitute Fair Use. Go look up what Fair Use really means before claiming such. Also, 99% of things are copyrighted. In fact, unless explicitly stated otherwise, it's assumed to be copyrighted. (No, you don't need to go get an official form to copyright something.) Use as many Licensing templates as necessary to best describe the license under which you are using the image. Licensing templates may be found here.|other versions=Generally not applicable, but self explanatory.

2) Proper Sourcing of Images

I commonly see people attempt to provide a link to their original image. It's a good effort, but they are doing it wrong. Here are two common mistakes:

Technically, you're linking to the actual image, but your link is pretty worthless. It is the picture. Cool. How do we know where the picture is from, how it's being used, etc.? Replace "http://images1.wikia.nocookie.net/" with "photobucket" or "facebook" and you'd have the same result: You don't have any information regarding the source, artist, commissioner, etc.

3) Helpful Resources

TinEye is a useful website that can assist you in finding the original source of an image. The website is a reverse image searcher, so you upload or input the image, and it will show you where else the image is found. Be careful, though, because the results show all of the locations where the image is posted. It does not show you the original source. So, you'll have to do some research/digging to find the first source of the image.

Last edited by Balsa on Sat Nov 26, 2011 1:44 pm, edited 2 times in total.

Balsa is a troll ( ), but he is also right. If you are uploading images on the wiki without properly citing them you are stealing. The same goes for celebrity pics, people are posting images of celebrities either from awards ceremonies or from actual movies without citing who the celebrity is or what movie the image was taken from. I'm not sure of the legal ramifications of this but I do have a feeling that if you upload pics of say a Victoria's Secret model (and we do have a few of those) and you don't cite the model's name and where the picture came from that Victoria's Secret will not take too kindly towards stealing what is essentially their property (it's a picture of their model wearing their clothes taken by their photographer, it doesn't belong to us). So please, let's all make an effort to properly cite our images. This is I believe the third time we've asked this of you and it's still happening. Do not ignore this message, it is for your benefit as well as ours.

New images without said template? Instant deletion the moment the admins see it.

There, that should be easy enough

"I don't know half of you half as well as I should like, and I like less than half of you half as well as you deserve." - Bilbo Baggins
From madness comes wisdom, and from wisdom comes power.
"I'm convinced you're secretly a British Spy" - Mir

So, for example, if you have a deviantART image (a common source for our stuff), you would put in "deviantART" where "Where you got it from", and of course the image URL In the above fashion in the link part. This will keep the formatting on the image. The same goes for the artist portion, and any other external linking.

I've had to mention this several times, but it just doesn't seem to make any difference. The Wikia isn't a "go and do whatever you feel like doing" place. I've grown tired of correcting other peoples' stuff because they're too lazy to do it right themselves. I can understand if you're just learning... but, please, for the love of all things holy and clean... if you don't know, then ask! Don't just assume that you'll do it then someone will fix it for you! The admin is not there to do that stuff. We're there to keep it orderly... not do the dirty work because you don't want to.

"I don't know half of you half as well as I should like, and I like less than half of you half as well as you deserve." - Bilbo Baggins
From madness comes wisdom, and from wisdom comes power.
"I'm convinced you're secretly a British Spy" - Mir

anyway the images can be put into categories? Capital ships in its own section with star fighters in another. Can't tell you how many time i went through the wiki's massive collective image dump to make sure i wasn't going to unload something that was already there.

"This is the captain. We have a little problem with our entry sequence, so we may experience some slight turbulence and then... explode."
--Serenity

"I don't know half of you half as well as I should like, and I like less than half of you half as well as you deserve." - Bilbo Baggins
From madness comes wisdom, and from wisdom comes power.
"I'm convinced you're secretly a British Spy" - Mir

Red Dragon wrote:anyway the images can be put into categories? Capital ships in its own section with star fighters in another. Can't tell you how many time i went through the wiki's massive collective image dump to make sure i wasn't going to unload something that was already there.

They can be, but you have to manually add the category. For example, I tag all of the images I upload with Category:Balsa so they're organized. But, if we can't get people to properly add the picture template, I don't believe people will add categories.

Yeah, I was referring to knowing the link itself, not being able to edit it.

I want to take things one step at a time for the Wikia. I know we need categories, but Balsa pretty much said it well enough. I don't want us to go through all that effort, only for it not to be used. We still have images being uploaded without being sourced, despite our previous announcement about said images will be deleted at our discretion. So, yeah, I kinda want to take this one step at a time.

So we're basically pushing stuff we should be doing to a later date, just because we don't have time to do other stuff? It is not our problem that people can't source their images. It's "source them or watch them be deleted". That shouldn't stop us from categorizing images as well.

"I don't know half of you half as well as I should like, and I like less than half of you half as well as you deserve." - Bilbo Baggins
From madness comes wisdom, and from wisdom comes power.
"I'm convinced you're secretly a British Spy" - Mir

Well for some people who have larger collections of uploaded images, I think there should be some time before sweeps go through. I got started a good chunk before I left for Basic, I've just been busy, but I know I'll get to them as soon as possible. Not everyone has the time windows that others have.

And yes, I get it, should have done it in the first place, but the fact is that it was done. Give people a chance to try to fix their mistakes before the axe comes. *shrug*

If you have the free time to do it, Jag, then by all means, do it. But it's not as high on our priority list as enforcing the image citing rule.

I enforce it when I see it happen, with the exception of a couple of Tab's images to which she's said she'll be updating the citing of. I allow some leeway in that regards. I have yet to decide how long, though, as I'm busy with other stuff offline as well. But otherwise, if I see it (which isn't too often, as someone else has been able to get to it before me in the past), then I take care of it.

Thanks, I know Cadden has been trying to help her but just randomly looking at some good images she has posted, she hasn't linked or referenced a single one.

I know someone on deviantArt complained on "Art Thieves" before. Now, they aren't exactly referencing people who use them for references for stories and such(As I have spoken to this person via chat) but they are talking about people essentially claiming their work.

The Wiki admin are currently investigated the proper course of action to help Tab get into proper Wiki editing techniques. Friendly reminders are welcome from community members, but we ask that you do not do so much as to take matters into your own hands.

As an FYI... the people at deviantART are a touchy bunch. As far as DA's policies go, I know that we can reference to their work so long as they do not say otherwise. However, at the same time, if they request we do not use a picture (as it has happened three times in the past, that I know of), then we must adhere to those requests.

Hrm, well a few of the images people have used on the Wiki, I speak to those people on a regular basis *nods* I wasn't trying to take anything into my own hands either, I was just giving her a friendly reminder. Just saying.

It's a public service announcement, Ghost. I don't want people to presume that they can go to others and demand that things get fixed. The Admin have been instructing people of proper editing techniques (Tab is not the exclusive subject matter, here, and I'm not going to single her out... just to alleviate any tension on that front), we're in discussion on how to resolve this recurring issue, in the meanwhile if you want to help, remember to approach the "offending party" with a helping hand mentality, and not "taking the law into your own hands," as it were. There's enough tension and conflict on the boards alone, we don't need it spilling to the Wikia as well.

Like I said, it's a general announcement, now that it has become something vocalized. I'm not pointing any fingers at anyone (if I were, I would have listed names, everyone here ought to know me well enough to know that).